Nanase Nijiro

Nijiro Nanase (七なな星せ 虹にじ郎ろう, Nanase Nijirō?) is a contender of Blue Lock, who is played as a left-wing for France's Paris X Gen during the Neo Egoist League.

Nanase is a young and bright-spirited forward who was first introduced as part of the final string of forwards remaining after the Second Selection. He also was a reserve member for the Blue Lock Eleven during the Japan U-20 match.

Following the end of the 5th round of the Neo Egoist League, and being ranked 23rd, Nanase qualified to become one of the 23 players for the new Japan U-20.

Appearance:

Nanase is a teenager of average height and muscular physique. At Blue Lock, Nanase wears the standard-issued body suit (black with blue stripes) and tracksuit. A distinctive trait of his is the Blue Lock headband he constantly wears during matches and training to keep his hair from getting in the way. During Second Selection, he wore Team White's #99 jersey, and during Third Selection, he wore Team A's #99 black jersey. During the Neo Egoist League, he wears Paris X Gen's #77 jersey.

Personality:

Nanase, at his core, is an honest, joyful and upright person, being able to form a strong rapport with Isagi and Hiori upon first meeting them during their match in the 3rd Selection. As he's from the countryside, he speaks with a Kansai dialect, and sometimes says phrases that he learned from there, such as "fluttering", meaning that he's excited. He respects those older than him and does his best to support them and not get in their way. Being such a happy guy, his disposition is a rarity among those still surviving in Blue Lock. Despite all this, Nanase is completely willing to do/become anything if it means being able to survive in Blue Lock, even going so far as to please and bow his head to become a "post player" for Rin Itoshi. However, he still treats those he's playing against, or with, with respect, no matter the situation he's in.

Abilities:

Archetype

Forwards: Also known as strikers, have the main objective of scoring goals. They are often the players who get the most attention since their role is designed to be in a scoring position. They also take part in penalty kicks and corner kicks when the opposing team kicks the ball out of bounds. They are normally the players in charge of starting off the game at the start and halftime.

Wingback: Wingbacks are often more adventurous than fullbacks and are expected to provide width, especially in teams without wingers. A wingback needs to be of exceptional stamina, be able to provide crosses upfield, and defend effectively against opponents's attacks down the flanks. A defensive midfielder may be fielded to cover the advances of wingbacks.

Skills:

Ambidexterity: Even though Nanase was unaware of this trait of his until the Neo Egoist League, his body is either innately left-sided or innately ambidextrous. In contrast to Kunigami's ambidexterity, who was forced to become ambidextrous to survive, both of Nanase's sides are at the same level with each other. In fact, he was seen passing the ball with both his left and right legs during the Third Selection. This weapon grants him the ability to pass and contribute to a teammate's goal from any direction.

Off-the-Ball Movements: A term used to describe the moments where players are not in possession of the ball. Like Yoichi Isagi, Nananse uses off-the-ball movements to position himself in ways that can help assist his team. He uses this skill to break defensive formations and has keen analytical ability, using the skill in the right place at the right time.

Etymology:

His given name, Nijiro (虹にじ郎ろう, Nijiro?), means "a rainbow son".

His surname, Nanase (七なな星せ, Nanase?), means "seven stars".

His name can thus be interpreted as "a son with a rainbow and seven stars".

Quotes:

(To Isagi) "I'm Nanase, a first-year. Then you're my senpai, Isagi-san! I am going to do my 'bestest' to not bring you down, okay?!"

(To Rin) "I—I'll do anything! I'll become anything! I wanna survive in the Neo-Egoist League... I'm offerin' everything to you, Rin-san...!!"

Trivia:

This information is from the official Egoist Bible. His favorite manga is Slam Dunk. His hometown is Ibaraki Prefecture. His hobby is going karaoke with friends; particularly, he likes singing "Tamashii Revolution". He likes the song "Rewrite" by Asian Kung-Fu Generation. His favorite food is the stamina fried rice his mother makes. His favorite subjects are PE, Technology, and Home Economics. He's good at soldering. His least favorite subjects are Japanese, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies. His favorite animal is the seven-spot ladybird, with which he has a sense of familiarity. His surname, Nanase (七星), can also be read as "Nanahoshi." Seven-spot ladybird in Japanese is "Nanahoshi Sentō". His favorite football player is Shinji Okazaki. The first thing he washes when in the bath is his forehead. By the end of the Neo Egoist League, Nanase got a ¥25,000,000 offer from "Start Lance" (スタート・ランス, Sutāto Ransu?). Start Lance is based on Stade de Reims.